Saiyan of Konoha
by Hedgehog of Time
Summary: Two weeks before the Kyuubi attack, Kakashi finds a tailed baby alone in the woods whom he raises as his own, with the help of Kurenai. The child sets in motion a new chain of events, opening up a new world in the Naruto universe, people get ready, Hachiman, the Saiyan of Konoha is coming, and is about to change the world. Kakashi/Kurenai, Naruto/Hinata OC/Temari, others as well.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Hachiman: the Boy With a Tail

(Two weeks before the attack of Kyuubi No Kitsune on Konoha)

Kakashi Hatake, Shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves in the Land of Fire was mounting a patrol along the Eastern border of the Land of Fire. The ANBU Black Ops Shinobi was bored but still watchful of any enemies on his patrol. To be honest, he wasn't sure why Hokage Minato had even sent him out this way, is anything they had to worry about their Southern border, but the Minato had been adamant.

Kakashi shrugged off the strange behavior and orders of his Sensei, it wasn't his place to question the his sensei after all, and continued his patrol. It wasn't his place to question the Hokage, it was his job to follow orders and stick to the mission like a good soldier. Kakashi continued on his way nearing the end of his designated search area, when he heard the peculiar sound cutting through the air.

It was an infant's wails. Kakashi slowed and turned towards the direction of the he got nearer the caterwauling increased, splitting his ears with it's intensity. The silver haired jonin broke through the leaves and landed in a large clearing, and tripping over a loose stone inside a massive crater sending him tumbling.

"Ouch, crap, piss!" he cried as he tumbled down the slope. There was a harsh hollow clang as he slammed into something large and metal. "Oww!" he groaned. Kakashi stood up groaning and rubbing his shoulder. He re-secured his now crooked ANBU mask and surveyed the surrounding land. The green Earth had been blasted apart sending soil and stones in every direction creating a huge crater at least twenty feet diameter. The blast seemed to have sent over two trees down by the sheer force of it. "What the hell happened here." he asked himself. Kakashi turned towards the center of the crater where he had slammed into the peculiar metal object, from which the wails were emanating.

The object was a perfect white sphere forged from some kind of white metal. A hatch had opened revealing a hollow interior. The inside was padded with a soft foam substance, and resting in the interior was a baby boy. The child was completely nude and couldn't have been over a year old. He had a long thick mane of white hair that hung all the way to his waist. His smooth pale skin covered a tiny body made of muscle with little baby fat. The little creature was howling his lungs out, and Kakashi soon saw why. There was a nasty injury on his head, resulting in a red swelling mark.

Awkwardly, Kakashi picked up the baby, holding him by the armpits. The baby stopped crying and opened it's eyes, revealing bright yellow irises brimming with curiosity. "What the hell?" said Kakashi aloud as he saw something white swishing about behind the baby. He turned the baby around, and was surprised to see a long white tail emerging from the baby's behind. It was a long ape-like tail, powerful and strong. "Okay." said the bewildered Kakashi turning the boy around to face him. "You have a tail... that's new."

The baby said nothing, only giggled slightly. "Quite the bump you've got there little guy." commented the Jonin. The moment he said that the injury began to trouble the infant again and he began to whimper.

Kakashi's mind began to race as he tried to think about what to do. A baby with a tail, he couldn't take it to the hospital, if the council didn't have him killed the poor baby would spend the rest of his life in a lab and if he had good genes then he would be Konoha's newest permanent resident of the CRA, and Kakashi wouldn't wish that fate upon anyone, except perhaps that bastard Danzo. So the hospital was out of the question, so was the orphanage until he was certain that the woman in charge could be trusted. He briefly considered giving it to his sensei, but he quickly discarded that idea. The Hokage was recently married to Kushina Uzumaki, Kakashi being one of the few privy to that fact, and from what he had heard the famous "Red Flash" was pregnant and the young couple would have their own little bundle of joy to take care of. It wouldn't be right asking them to take care of some random baby from the forest, not when they had so much going on right now.

When the idea entered his head, he mentally laughed at it and attempted to discard it. And yet, he could see no other option. "No!" he shouted at the very confused infant. "No I am not doing that! So stop looking at me like that!" The baby blinked at him. "FINE YOU WIN! I'LL TAKE CARE OF YOU!" He brought the baby right up to his nose. "But only until your head is better an I find another village to dump you in! Got that?!" the baby said nothing, only giggled at the funny masked man.

* * *

Minato Namikazee was mentally cursing Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third Hokage, with every foul word he knew, most of which Jiraiya had taught him. The old man had failed to tell Minato of the endless paperwork and hand cramps that came with the job of Hokage. _"I ought to resign and force him to do this crap instead!"_ the Kamizakee mentally raged. _"It would be only be a just punishment for tricking me like this!"_

But Minato sighed and leaned back over his work. Hiruzen had earned his retirement and Minato respected that, it was his turn to suffer under the yoke of bureaucracy. He adjusted the picture of him and Kushina on his desk and smiled at it. At least he still had his wife to support him, Hiruzen couldn't boast the same.

There was an knock at his office door. Minato quickly stashed the picture in his desk drawer and cried "Come in!" He was relieved to see Kakashi entering the room he had discarded his ANBU mask and was wearing his usual mask and head protector. "Ah Kakashi, good to see you, anything strange or dangerous to report?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No sir, nothing. But I actually need to talk to you about something." he looked a bit embarrassed by this and rubbed the back of his neck.

Minato nodded. "I see, I hope it's important though, I'm a very busy man." as he spoke he tapped his ear lobe, his discreet way of telling Kakashi that they were being listened to by that leech Danzo and his ROOT ANBU.

Kakashi nodded. "Of course Hokage-sama. I just wished to tell you that I will be resigning from the ANBU and returning to regular Jonin work."

To say that Minato was surprised would be both true and false. He knew his pupil was unpredictable at times, so he was unsurprised by the fact that he had done something like this, but the sheer scale of what he was requesting was what surprised him. Kakashi had worked hard to be placed on the ANBU, and he couldn't quite understand why Kakashi was doing this. "W-why Kakashi? I would know your reasons."

Kakashi sighed. "My reasons are my own Hokage-sama, besides, I'm hoping for this to be a temporary situation. A couple weeks at most."

Minato frowned as he weighed his options. He was dying of curiosity and would be well within his power to order Kakashi to tell him, that was his privilege as Hokage, but it was probably very personal for Kakashi and would be highly embarrassing to him personally. Also, he didn't want Danzo learning anything that could be used against Kakashi.

On the other hand Kakashi's secret's could prove to be dangerous to Konoha. If so it would be foolhardy not to learn what they were. But Kakashi was perhaps the most loyal shinobi that Minato had ever known.

In the end Minato decided to trust his pupil. "Very well Kakashi, good luck to you." said Minato curtly.

A look of relief gleamed in Kakashi's eyes. "Thank you Hokage-sama, I promise I'll get back to work as soon as my business is done." he smiled and waved as he turned to leave.

Minato nodded. "But before you go, tell me one thing." Kakashi froze as he was about to exit the door. "This... business of yours." said Minato suspiciously. "Is it dangerous to Konoha in any way? And don't lie to me Kakashi, I can always tell when you're lying." It was true, Minato could always tell when Kakashi was lying, just like he had been able to tell when Obito and Rin had been lying. He quickly crushed those thoughts though, it was no use dwelling on the past.

Kakashi considered for a long moment before finally saying, "I don't think so sir, but if it proves to be I will instantly stop."

Minato nodded, partially satisfied. "Very well Kakashi, good luck in your "business", and I will hold you to your word." Kakashi nodded and quickly left the office. Minato sighed and leaned back in his chair, deciding to take a break from his paperwork and try to get his strange conversation with Kakashi off his mind. He reached into his desk and took out the book he had been reading recently. It was intriguing tale to say the least, if a tad quaint.

The legend of the Saiyans always did fascinate him.

* * *

Kurenai Yuhi, the Jonin Genjutsu mistress of Konoha was shopping for a new set of kunai in Mebuki Haruno's General Store when she saw Kakashi Hatake shopping for baby supplies. If she had been told this morning that she would be seeing one of the most dangerous shinobi in Konoha shopping for diapers and baby formula she would have locked them up in a mental institution and thrown the key away, and yet here he was, and here she was watching it happen.

"Um... Kakashi?" she asked walking up behind the grocery laden Jonin. Kakashi jumped and spun around, trying hard not to spill his things.

"Oh, it's you Kurenai." said the relieved Jonin. "You surprised me."

Kurenai nodded. "Yeah, sorry about that." she said quickly. "Now why are you buying baby stuff?" she asked with her hands on her hips, an inquisitive look on her face.

"Oh... um.." said Kakashi sweating nervously. "I.. um.. have a... new pet monkey." he said hesitantly. He looked incredibly nervous and he was sweating rather a lot. All I all he looked rather like a boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Kurenai raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Really? A pet monkey." she said in a disbelieving voice.

Kakashi nodded, still looking nervous. "Yep, a pet monkey, tail and all."

Kurenai shook her head. "I'm calling bullshit Kakashi. You're one of, if not the, greatest ANBU operatives in Konoha who's out on missions six days of the week! Why the hell would you get a pet monkey?"

"Well, I'm not ANBU anymore." he mumbled.

"Oh geez, did you get fired or something?" she asked in a concerned tone. Kakashi shook his head and said nothing. "You quit? And because of that you got a pet monkey?" she asked incredulously. Kakashi shook his head. "Wait, you quit the most prestigious class of shinobi in Konoha BECAUSE you got a pet monkey?" she asked with even more disbelief.

Kakashi hesitantly nodded and said, "That's about the gist of it."

Kurenai blinked. "Okay whatever." she said turning around and preparing to leave.

"W-wait, you believe me?" said Kakashi in a shocked voice. He had thought Kurenai was smarter than this.

Kurenai shrugged and left the store. The moment the door closed behind her she used a chakra jump to jump up onto the roof and looked down, waiting for Kakashi to leave. She knew that Kakashi wasn't going to divulge anything to her willingly. She could torture him, but this would probably be easier given the typical ANBU tolerance for pain. One way or another, she was going to find out what was up with the copycat ninja.

After a few moments Kakashi exited the store and began to make his way home. Kurenai smirked and began to follow him, jumping from roof to roof while always keeping an eye of his location. She followed him for some time until the silver haired Jonin reached an apartment complex on the north edge of the village. She hid behind an air conditioner and peered over the side and watched as he entered his apartment on the fifth floor. Kurenai smirked and jumped to the ground and quickly jumping to the landing outside of Kakashi's door.

Kurenai crouched and peered into the window at Kakashi's living room. She watched as the Jonin set his groceries on the coffee table and left the room. "Dammit." she quietly cursed. She was about to leave when Kakashi came back into the room. She gasped as she saw what he was carrying. _"Well, I guess he was telling half the truth, he does have a tail."_ she thought incredulously.

Kakashi had a white haired, tailed baby in his hands. Kurenai couldn't believe it. _"He- he has a kid! That poor child!"_ Kurenai shook her head. She was furious, she and Kakashi were old friends, and he lied to her about something of this magnitude? _"Okay, confrontation time!"_ Kurenai stood up and angrily forced open the door. "So, this is your pet monkey eh?" She snarled at the shocked looking Jonin.

"Oh.. Kuenai.. nice to-" he stuttered as the baby began to whimper in fright of the scary red-eyed woman.

"Interesting breed Kakashi, what is he, a Capuchin Hairless?" she said sarcastically.

"M-maybe." stuttered Kakashi.

Kurenai facepalmed. "Just cut the shit Kakashi, why do you have a baby, and why did you lie about it?"

Kakashi sighed. "I-I found him on my patrol yesterday, alone in the woods."

"Then why didn't you give him to the damn orphanage? And why did you lie?!" she shouted at him.

Kakashi cringed. "If went to the orphanage, the council would have made sure he spent the rest of his damn life in a lab... I couldn't let that happen." he looked up at her. "And as for why I lied, I couldn't risk Danzo hearing about what was happening. Mebuki is on the council and, even though she's a good person, she'd blab about it, it's just who she is."

Kushina blinked, her anger gone. "Wow Kakashi... that is surprisingly noble of you."Kakashi blushed at the praise. "But are you really ready to be a dad? I mean no offense, but you don't exactly strike me as the fatherly type."

Kakashi nodded though, "I agree with you, I'm not cut out to be a dad, I'm planning on taking him to some obscure civilian village as soon as his head is better."

"Wait, what happened to his head?" asked Kurenai in an alarmed voice.

Kakashi walked over to her and pointed to the injury on his head. "I'm not sure how he got it, but it's been giving him trouble. I can't take him to the hospital, the ROOT would be over him faster than a swarm of locusts, but I don't think it's life threatening."

"Let me see him." said Kurenai commandingly. Kakashi hesitantly handed the baby over into Kurenai's arms. Kurenai carefully examined the wound and gingerly touched it, snatching her hand back when the baby whimpered.

"It's not terminal, but it needs proper care." she said without looking up. "I'll find someone who can-"

"No!" cried Kakashi quite suddenly. Kurenai looked up, shocked at her friends' outburst. "I want as few people to know about this kid as possible. Who knows who's on Danzo's payroll."

Kurenai nodded after a moment, it made sense. "I understand. Well, I might as well help you with the brat" she sighed.

"Wait, what?" asked a very confused Kakashi as Kurenai breezed past him into the kitchen.

"Well you admitted that you have no clue what you're doing with the kid, I have some experience with my little brother, so I figured I might as well help out." shrugged Kurenai. "You do want help don't you?" she asked.

"Oh.. um... yeah! Thanks." said Kakashi.

The day went on in a manner similar to this, Kakashi kept messing up with things and Kurenai kept correcting him with quickly wanning patience.

"Kakashi," she ground out, "I told you set the oven for the formula at ninety degrees, why did you set it to one-hundred and ninety?"

Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I thought I could speed up the process if I turned up the temperature? How was I supposed to know it would explode like that?"

Kureanai fought the urge to strangle Kakashi. "Alright, you get one more mess up like that, then I'm going to kill you." They heard a wailing from the bedroom where they had put the baby. "And now the kid is going to be expecting his dinner and I don't know about you, but I don't exactly have the proper facilities to-"

There was a splintering crash, cutting Kurenai off. The two froze for a moment, then both rushed towards the direction of the noise. Somehow, with his tiny baby fists, the baby had broken down the sturdy oaken door. The child was sitting in the hallway, wailing for his food.

"Well," said Kurenai breathlessly. "I guess we shouldn't make him hungry."

As Kakashi comforted the baby and stopped his wailing, Kurenai prepared the baby formula for him, but soon found that the baby's appetite matched his strength when he sucked down two successive bottles in three seconds and began wailing for more. After giving his the rest of the formula Kakashi had bought, and found that the baby was still hungry, they gave him regular milk, of which he guzzled down two gallons of.

"How in Kami's name, is a tiny baby able to consume that much food?" asked a shell shocked Kakashi as the baby snored in an equally shocked Kurenai's arms. "It- it isn't possible."

Kurenai sighed. "I have no idea, but this kid isn't normal. But at least I think I've found a suitable name for him."

Kakashi furrowed his brow. "A name? I thought I told you I'm not keeping him." Kakashi didn't want to form any type of bond with the kid, even if it was just a name.

Kurenai sighed in frustration. "I am aware of that, thank you very much. But we can't keep calling him, "that kid", it's too weird and sounds unnatural."

The one-eyed Jonin thought for a moment, and then nodded in ascent. "What did you have in mind?"

"Hachiman." she said simply.

Kakashi thought for a moment then smiled. "After the benevolent God of War, I like it." He stood up and walked over to Kurenai, standing over the slumbering baby. "Hachiman, it's perfect." Kakashi and Kurenai were by no means a family, but in that moment they felt a warm feeling that was alien to so many Shinobi in their blood soaked lives. In that moment, they were surrounded by love.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A Date (AKA: Fluffy Romantic moments)

The days turned into weeks, and Kakashi nursed Hachiman as his injury healed, his skills as a parent gradually improving with Kurenai's instruction. Kurenai of course went out of her way to help out her friend whenever she could. Little Hachiman's gargantuan strength was a little hard to hide, especially when he started to punch the walls and pound on the floor during tantrums, but the apartment that Kakashi lived in was practically abandoned, save for a couple about four floors above him, and a crazy cat lady with about twenty pets that lived in the basement. So it was easy enough to pass off the tantrums as simple increasing seismic events, much to the alarm of the crazy cat lady who began to stockpile foodstuffs for a coming emergency.

Another problem was the baby's mammoth appetite which was quickly eating up Kakashi's bankroll (No pun intended). Both shinobi soon realized that though he was only a baby he was quite capable of eating and digesting real food. Not wanting to draw the attention of the various guilds who ran business in Konoha, Kakashi and Kurenai both took up hunting as a method of substituting for Hachiman's food supply and rescue the both of them from bankruptcy. Konoha's forests soon began to experience a massive decline in deer and elk populations, much to the alarm of the game wardens.

Their friends of course, began to notice their odd behavior and extended absences when not on missions, however when they found that they couldn't get any straight answers from either of the Jonin and any attempts to follow them to see where they were going ended with either a Genjutsu leading them on a wild goose chase or a low powered Chidori to the stomach they soon left the pair to their own devices.

As for Kakashi and Kurenai themselves, they became closer as friends through caring for little Hachiman, but a rather different bond had begun to grow between them. As shinobi they tended to be creatures of habit when it came to normal things like shopping or other civilian activities. But as the days passed Kakashi and Kurenai, almost subconsciously, began to change their routes, the places they shopped at, the times at which they did things so they would run each other. When they started to notice they made excuses to themselves, like they needed to consult each other about Hachiman, but their conversations during this time rarely if ever mentioned the baby.

Kakashi often found himself staring at Kurenai. He didn't really find it strange, after all that's what men do with beautiful women, they stare at them, admire them. Not in an ugly way, not at all, just in the very appreciative way that a man looks at a beautiful woman.

It was then that Kakashi realized he considered Kurenai beautiful.

Kurenai also found herself drawn to the masked jonin more and more. For the longest time she had just considered him the quirky shinobi who liked to read books of questionable morals. But the more time she spent with him, the more she discovered there was far more to him than met the eye. Like how he was a master of calligraphy, a skill she would never before have associated with a jonin of Kakashi's caliber and pervert level. But the most surprising thing she learned about him was his incredible singing voice.

She discovered this quite by accident when she came over one night and heard crying coming from Hachiman's room. She made her way to his room when she heard Kakashi... singing!

**"Leaves from the vine,**

**falling so slow,**

**like fragile tiny shells,**

**drifting in the foam.**

**Little soldier boy,**

**come marching home,**

**brave soldier boy,**

**comes marching home."**

By the time the song was over Hachiman was lightly snoring. Kakashi smiled under his mask and laid the baby into the crib they had made for him. He turned and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Kurenai leaning on the doorjamb smiling at him.

"Oh, Kurenai! I- I did- did not see you there." he said. "How long were you-'

"I heard the whole song Kakashi." she said smiling. "You have a beautiful singing voice."

Kakashi blushed fiercely. "Y-yeah. Keep that under your hat will you. If people find out that I'm a singer in private then I'll be the laughing stock of the village and any Missing Nin who find out."

Kurenai shook her head. "Kakashi why would you hide a gift like that? You have an amazing voice. You could probably quit being a ninja and make a fortune as a singer for goodness sake!" Kakashi looked down and leaded against Hachiman's crib.

"You know, when I was little I wanted to be a singer." he said quietly. THAT threw Kurenai a curve. No matter what she had said earlier, she could not picture Kakashi as anything other than a the ultimate ninja warrior that he was. And to think of him actually as a professional singer, it was preposterous. Kakashi sighed, "Yeah, my dad thought it was a phase that I would grow out of, but not my mom. No, she encouraged me, taught me to sing, taught me to play music, she wanted to help me become what I wanted to be, even if she herself was a ninja." He began to fiddle with a kunai, the story pouring out of him like water from a burst dam. "One day she got sent out on a mission looking for a Missing Nin named Ichigo Norizano. When her companion got back, he brought back two corpses." there was a long pause. Kurenai shouldn't have been surprised. Ninja's lives did not typically have happy endings. "After she died, I swore I would become a Ninja, the best there ever was, and uphold everything she believed in."

For a long moment Kurenai said nothing, taking in what she had heard from Kakashi. In a few short moments everything she had thought she had known about the silver haired jonin had been turned upside down. She wasn't sure what to say to him. Kurenai knew that Ninja, particularly ANBU, didn't tend to come from happy families. Kami knew she didn't. They were people who wanted to get away, people who wanted to lash out at the world that had been so cruel to them. Still, Kakashi had had the potential to avoid this world of blood and death and make a name for himself in the process, but he hadn't taken it.

Kurenai simply didn't know how to respond to that. So she said simply, "You said that your mother taught you to play music, what was the instrument?"

Kakashi blinked at the question. "Oh, she taught me, um what was it, oh yeah. She taught me guitar and ocarina. I only learned a couple notes on the guitar though, but when I was little I could play the ocarina like a little master." he smiled warmly at the memory. Suddenly he shook his head. "Come on, we need to get Hachiman's dinner ready." he said as he walked past her into the kitchen.

_"Ocarina eh?"_ thought Kurenai deviously as she followed Kakashi into the kitchen to fix their mutual problem's dinner.

* * *

The next day Kakashi and Kurenai took Hachiman out of the apartment for the first time since he had found the child. Today they were having a little picnic, mainly for Hachiman to play around in the forest for a change. Hachiman immediately loved the forest, and started his fun day by rolling in the clover field and crawling after squirrels with astonishing speed.

"Those little varmints better be careful." chuckled Kakashi sitting against a tree trunk. "If Hachiman catches them he'll probably eat them raw."

Kurenai chuckled but in the back of her mind knew that Kakashi was probably right, Hachiman's appetite for food was outdone only by Jiraiya the Sanin's lust foe women. She sat down next to her friend watching their mutual problem snap his teeth at a rather terrified chipmunk.

"So I-"

"I got you-" they spoke at the same time. They stopped and blinked at each other. Both laughed a little in embarrassment. "You go first." said Kurenai still smiling.

"No mine can wait." he said, still blushing. "You go ahead."

"Okay, if you insist." said Kurenai with a fake sigh. They both chuckled and Kurenai dug out o small wood box out of her pack and handed it to Kakashi. "Happy anniversary" she smiled.

"Anniversary?" questioned Kakashi as he took the box, weighing it in his hand.

"You took in little Hachiman two weeks ago, this is our two week anniversary of not losing our minds." she said with a shrug.

"Ah." said Kakashi, "As good a reason to celebrate as any I suppose". He opened the box, secretly hoping for the newest edition of Icha Icha Paradise, and stared at it's contents for a long time, not saying a single word.

"D-do you not like it?" she asked nervously. Kurenai knew it was a gamble getting him this, and she was unsure of how he would react to it. He might resent the memories the present brought him, or he might be thankful for the reminder of a more innocent time, she wasn't sure.

With trembling fingers Kakashi took out the object, a blue ten-hole ocarina. The object was crafted from fine rosewood, painted over with a light blue paint. Kakashi held it in his hands, a single tear sliding down his cheek. Silently the jonin slid down his mask, revealing his whole face for the first time. Kurenai noticed the Kakashi was in fact quite handsome, but those thoughts disappeared from her thoughts as Kakashi brought the ocarina to his lips and began to play (Zelda's Lullaby from "Ocarina of Time"). He had not picked an ocarina since he was five years old, and yet his fingers found the patter in the wood and his breath seemed to summon forth the tune as though he had played his whole life. The melody he played was a beautiful haunting tune that filled Kurenai with a strange mix of sadness and hope, like how one may feel a few weeks after losing a loved one. Sadness still filled it, but with it was a lingering sense of hope.

Kakashi brought down the ocarina. "It's perfect Kurenai, thank you so much." his voice was so thick with emotion it sounded like he was trying to keep from crying. "I'm sorry, I have nothing for you." he said apologetically.

Kurenai said nothing, only wrapped her friend in a hug and leaned her head against his shoulder. As they sat there Kurenai couldn't help but feel how easy this felt. She couldn't help but feel how happy she was with him, how he gave her hope and listened to her with quiet patience. She thought about his gentlemanly ways despite his perverted side.

The sat there for a long time, just watching little Hachiman play with the world around him.

Kurenai finally broke the silence. "So, what did you want to say?" she asked Kakashi looking up at him.

Kakashi seemed to remember that he did indeed have something to say with a jolt. "Oh, yes." he said. He quickly put the ocarina away and turned to Kurenai while pulling up his mask. "Um, what I wanted to ask was... well... are you free tomorrow night?" he asked nervously.

Kurenai blinked at him, unsure of where he was heading with this. "Yeah, no real plans." she said slightly suspicious.

"Well, I was wondering if... you know... can I take you out to dinner?" he asked.

Kurenai stared at him for a long moment. "Are- are you asking me out on a date?" she asked incredulously.

"Um.. well... yeah. I guess." mumbled Kakashi nervously.

"What about Hachiman? We can't exactly leave him alone for an entire evening." she said.

"I'll take care of that." assured Kakashi. "I have a plan, he'll be alright. Will you come." he said hopefully.

Kureani smiled and kissed him on the cheek "I'll be ready at seven." she smiled. She disappeared in a swirl of leaves, leaving Kakashi to recover his brain function after it had shorted out from the kiss.

* * *

The next day, a heavily pregnant Kushina Uzumaki was going over the things in the baby room, making sure nothing was out of place and everything needed for the coming miracle was there and in place. All her life the red headed kunoichi had never pictured herself preparing for the life-long role of motherhood, and in a secret marriage no less! It sounded like something out of a mediocre Soap Opera in truth. And yet here she was, and she loved every single moment of it. She had a wonderful loving husband, a secure future, and a child that she and her husband could shower love and affection on for the rest of their lives. She felt like she was in a schoolgirl's fantasy.

There was a knock at the door. Kushina froze, unsure of what to do. No one was supposed to know she was pregnant with Minato's child. She quickly prepared a Genjutsu when she heard a familiar voice.

"Kushina? It's me, Kakashi." said Minato's pupil. "Open the door I know you're in there. I need a big favor." Kushina breathed a sigh of relief, it was only Kakashi, one of the few people she and Minato truly trusted in this entire village.

"I'm coming, give me a second." she said making her way to the door. Kushina moved with a certain heavy grace that was common amongst pregnant women. When she opened the door she could only stare at what she saw. Kakashi was dressed in a tuxedo holding a white haired baby with a tail.

"I know this looks weird." said Kakashi. "But I'm sort of taking care of Hachiman here for a while. Would you be so kind as to watch him tonight while I go out on my date?" not waiting for a response Kakashi thrust Hachiman into her arms and disappeared in a swirl of leaves, leaving Kushina wearing a WTF look on her face. She looked down at the baby in her arms.

"So, your a baby huh?" she asked. Hachiman gurgled slightly.

* * *

(Seven o'clock the next night)

"Asuma! My youthful friend!" cried Gai bursting into Asuma's apartment. The jonin had been reading the newspaper and drinking a little bit of liquid courage when Gai had interrupted him.

"Dammit Gai!" roared Asuma as he spilled his whiskey all over his shirt. "What the hell is wrong with you!"

Gai didn't lose his huge smile or at all see affected by Asuma's harsh words. "I just wished to tell you that our friend and my Eternal Rival Kakashi has done a very youthful thing!" grinned Gai, impervious to Asuma's murderous look.

"What did he do?" said Asuma sarcastically. "Did he beat the Hokage in a fight? Did he get laid or something?"

Gai shook his head. "No he has done neither, but I am certain that he will be doing the second thing very soon. He is taking our friend Kurenai out on a date. YOSH!"

Asuma caught his breath and stared at Gai in shock. Of all the things he had expected Gai to say, that was at the bottom of the list. Asuma couldn't help but feel betrayed in a way. He had had a crush on Kurenai for the longest time and now she was going on a date with Kakashi? He felt pissed, and not just a Kakashi for asking her or at Kurenai for accepting, but at himself for never acting on his feelings.

"Kakashi you son of a bitch!" roared Asuma jumping up from his seat.

"Asuma!" cried Gai. "It would not be very youthful of you to interrupt their date!" Gai scowled at him.

Asuma growled in frustration as he grabbed a pair of clean pants. "I'm not, I'm gonna make sure Kakashi doesn't try anything funny with Kurenai!"

"Ah, that is most youthful!" cried Gai. "I shall accompany you to make sure Kakashi does not try anything inappropriate with our friend! That would be most un-youthful of my eternal rival." Asuma rolled his eyes.

"Fine you can come with, but no blabbering on about the "Flames of Youth"." he growled.

"B-but?" said a teary eyed Gai.

"Do you want to come or not!?" he roared. Gai hung his head.

* * *

There was a knock at Kurenai's door. Kurenai, who was no where near ready looked up at the door in mortal terror. "K-Kakashi!?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes, it's me." said Kakashi from behind the door. "You said you'd be ready at seven remember. Was I wrong?"

_'The one freaking time he's actually on time!'_ thought Kurenai getting up in a whirl. "Yeah, just give me a minute!"

Kakashi waited patiently outside the door for about five minutes, and when the door opened, all he could think was that it was worth the wait.

(Cue Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get it On" right here ;) )

Kurenai was a strapless red sequin dress cut off at the lower calf that glimmered in the streetlight. Instead of her usual shinobi sandals she wore red high heels that added about three inches to her height. Clasped around her neck was a diamond necklace that bore a flawless three carrot diamond on it.

"You look sharp tonight Kakashi." smiled Kurenai seemingly oblivious but smugly aware of the effect her appearance was having on Kakashi. The silver haired jonin didn't respond, he simply couldn't. His brain had ceased to function. He couldn't comprehend that Kurenai Yuhi, the second biggest tomboy in Konoha next to Kushina Uzumaki herself was dressed like a movie starlet all ready for the red carpet. "Umm, Kakashi," snickered Kurenai. "Are you okay?"

Kakashi felt a nosebleed beneath his mask. He rapidly shook his head and said "Y-yeah. Y-you look... stunning." he said breathlessly.

Kurenai smiled. "Like I said, you don't look half bad yourself Kakashi," she chuckled as Kakashi blushed from her praise. She extended her arm to him. "Shall we go on our way?"

Kakashi shook off his daze and smiled under his mask. "Y-yeah, lets go."

* * *

(Some time later)

"Asuma my friend, we have searched over twelve restaurants throughout Konoha. I believe we should call it a night." groaned Gai as he and Asuma walked across a rooftop.

"Not until we find them" growled Asuma. But part of him was starting to agree with Gai, as strange as the idea of agreeing with the eccentric jonin was. Besides, what was he trying to accomplish? They were both fully grown adults, well within their rights to go on a date with each other and possibly take it further than that, so why was he out here?

"Wait Asuma!" cried Gai, looking down at the street below them. "I believe that I see Kakashi below us!"

"Where, let me see!" cried Asuma rushing over look over the side at where Gai was pointing. Asuma stared for a moment then snarled "Kakashi you bastard I'll kill you!"

"Asuma, what is wrong!" cried Gai in surprise.

"What do you think!" roared Asuma. "Kakashi is supposed to take Kurenai out for a date and he ditches her and starts hitting on some skank?! I'll kill him!"

Gai blinked at him. "Um, Asuma, that "skank" is Kurenai."

Asuma felt like he had been punched in the gut. He looked back down and realized that it WAS Kurenai talking with Kakashi. They were laughing, hugging, and...

Asuma turned around walked away, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "Asuma!" cried Gai. "Where are you going? It is most un-youthful to go back on your word!"

"Y-yeah, I know Gai." said the subdued Jonin. "I know. I just... I need some time to think." Gai could only watch as his friend walked off into the night.

* * *

Kurenai and Kakashi laughed together as Kakashi walked her home. Their date had gone perfectly, there had been excellent food, fine sake, and intelligent conversation the entire night. Kurenai never thought that Konoha's copycat Ninja could be so romantic, and yet this was only a minor thing compared to the other things she had found out about Kakashi.

"I had a great time tonight Kakashi." smiled Kurenai as they approached her door.

"Yeah, I did too Kurenai." smiled Kakashi. "Consider it my way of thanking you for helping me out with Hachiman so much, I couldn't have done this without you."

Kurenai frowned. "Are you going to go through with your plan? I mean, are you gonna give him up?"

Kakashi sighed. "I-I don't know anymore, maybe. He's not safe here in Konoha, not as long as that slimy bastard Danzo holds sway, but I'm not sure if I can part with him anymore." He ran his free hand through his silver hair. "I just don't know what to do anymore."

Kurenai smiled at him. "Well Kakashi, whatever you decide to do, I'll be right here beside you, you can count on me." with that she pecked him on the cheek and entered her house, leaving Kakashi outside, waiting for his synapses to turn back on.

* * *

High in the sky above the Namikaze estate a man floated in the air, and yet it was more a creature than a man. His skin was green, his head bare save for two antenna. His skin was wrinkled with age, his brow creased with worry. He wore white and purple robes, a wooden staff in his hand. Emblazoned on his chest was the kanji for "Guardian". His appearance was terrifying, and yet he emanated an aura of kindness and gentleness that made one trust him.

"It was not mere chance this child came to this planet, I dread what comes next for him." the creature pondered aloud. "A Saiyan always brings destruction in their wake, but for whom, good or evil." The creature smiled to himself. "Perhaps this may not become a disaster for us. Sleep well little Hachiman, oh God of War, your time is coming."


	3. Chapter 3

**Shenron: (Appears out of the Dragon Balls) I am the Eternal Dragon, state your wish and I shall grant it.**

**Wonderful People who Helped me Through This Tough Time: Bring back Hedgehog of Time to the world of fanfiction!**

**Shenron: Your wish is granted.**

**Me: HELL YEAH! I AM BACK BABY! WHOO!**

Chapter 3: Two Destroyers

Kakashi shushined in front of the Namikaze estate in a puff of smoke having changed into his usual ninja gear rather than the dressy tuxedo he had worn for his date with Kurenai. He walked up to the door hoping against hope that Minato had not come home yet. His mind was in turmoil, unsure of what to do with Hachiman now. He knew it would be best for the child if he gave it away to someone else, but now his heart couldn't bear the idea of parting with the tailed baby. The baby had found a way to attach itself to him

Kakashi shook his head as he walked up to the front door, and stood stock still as he heard Kushina screaming from upstairs. Not wasting any time, Kakashi jumped up through the window into the room, a kunai drawn, ready for action. But his eyes bugged out at the sight before him. Kushina was lying on a table about to give birth with Minato standing over her, whispering comfort while holding her hand. Two Medic nins were hovering over Kushina with practiced patience while another stood off to the side cradling Hachiman.

Minato looked up at the sound of shattering glass, but relaxed when he saw Kakashi. "Oh, Kakashi. It's you. You've sort of come at a bad time my friend."

"I can see that Hokage-sama," said Kakashi blushing. He stood and sheathed his kunai. "I'm just here to pick up Hachiman anyways."

Minato glared at him. "Yes... I do not approve of you not telling me about the Saiyan you've taken in."

"Wait, what the Hells is a Saiyan?" asked Kakashi in a confused tone.

"Um, I do hate to interrupt," groaned Kushina. "But.. I'M SORT OF HAVING A BABY HERE!" she screamed st them.

"S-sorry sweetie." said Minato.

Kakashi chuckled. "Man, she has you whipped Sensei." he laughed. Minato glared at him again, looking mad enough to kill. Truth be told the look on his face would have killed a lesser man, but Kakashi was no lesser man.

"Here's your son Mr. Hatake." Smiled the Medic Nin handing the sleeping Hachiman over to the cycloptic jonin.

"Oh- um- he's not my son actually, I'm just-" began Kakashi awkwardly.

"IT'S COMING!" cried Kusina in agony. The three Medic Nin's rushed to the red haired woman's side pushing Minato away. The Hokage stumble next to Kakashi and stood by him.

"Are- are you alright sensei?" asked Kakashi. "You're trembling."

Minato nodded and gulped nervously. "Y-yeah, I'm just a wee bit nervous about the fact that I'm becoming a dad."

Kakashi smiled and patted his surrogate father on the shoulder with his free hand in a comforting fashion. "Minato, if there was ever anyone better suited to become a father it's you Sensei. I mean, you practically raised me and look how I turned out." Minato blinked at him with an unconvinced look on his face. "Right, bad example." said Kakashi. "Um.. well... you-"

"Kakashi." smiled Minato. "Stop trying."

"Right sorry." said Kakashi. Suddenly Kushina gave a wail that split their ears like none other. It lasted for a long moment, but when it passed, a new sound was heard, it was loud and annoying sound, but it was also music to their ears. It was a baby's wails and cries for hunger and love. Hearing these cries, Hachiman decided to join in creating an unbearable din in the house.

Almost reverently, Minato walked forward, quickly joined by his silver haired pupil. Every step seemed like a mile to them, every stride seemed to be an eternity. When they reached the Medic-Nins the lead one turned and smiled holding a bundle in her arms. She smiled at Minato and said, "Congratulations Hokage-sama, it's a beautiful little boy." With that she showed the baby to Minato. The round baby cheeks were red and rosy and his eyes were tightly shut. A layer of soft and downy blonde hair covered his head.

"A boy." he said quietly. "A baby boy. I'm a father!' he cried, tears in his eyes. He hesitantly reached out to grab the baby but the Medic-Nin snatched it away.

"I'm sorry Hokage-sama, but this baby needs proper medical atten-" her words were cut off by a black flash, and the baby was gone from her hands. Her eyes had a glazed look in them, and a moment later blood spurted from her neck which had been nearly cleaved in two. She fell over to the side leaving Minato and Kakashi staring in shock. The other two Medic-Nins gasped and ducked for cover.

"No.." groaned out Kushina as she saw the man standing by the far wall.

He was a tall man, wearing a black cloak which covered his entire body and an orange mask with a ripple pattern, a single eye hole bored through it, an Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan peering from it. In his arms, he held the crying baby boy.

"Step away from the woman Hokage." said the man in a dark voice devoid of any emotion. "Step away if you wish for the child to live."

"Wha- who the Hell are you!" roared Kakashi, slowly handing off Hachiman to one of the Medic-Nins. "What are you doing with my sensei's son!?"

"I told you Kakashi Hatake." said the man calmly. "I'm using him as a hostage, step away from the woman now if you care about what happens to the child."

"Everyone stay calm!" cried Minato, desperately trying to defuse the rapidly devolving situation.

"Speak for yourselves." snorted the masked man. "I am supremely calm. Now I will ask you again, step away from the jinchūriki."

Kushina suddenly groaned in pain again, strange symbols beginning to cover her body. "The Kyuubi no Kitsune's seal." said Minato in a panicked voice. "It must be weakened by the birthing process!"

"Wait... THE WHAT!" cried Kakashi in shock. He had of course heard of the containers of the legendary Tailed Beasts, what self respecting shinobi hadn't, but never in his wildest dreams did he think that Kushina Uzumaki, the Red Flash of Konoha and secret wife of the fourth Hokage, was one of those people!

"Time is up Hokage-sama." sneered the masked man. He produced a kunai from his robe and threw the baby up into the air, holding up his Kunai preparing to spear him. There was a flash as Minato moved faster than thought grabbing his son and landing behind the masked assailant.

"Impressive." remarked the stranger quite calmly. "But not nearly enough to keep me from my goals." Minato looked down at the blanket that held his son, and caught his breath as he saw several fire seals placed on it. As the seals began to spark the Hokage knew he had only seconds to act before his son was burned alive. Jumping through the hole to the bottom floor Minato tore off the seals and threw the blanket away, leaping out a nearby window the moment his feet touched the ground. Not a moment too soon, for the moment he got out the window the seals exploded, destroying the bottom floor.

Up in the attic the masked man made his move. Moving too fast for Kakashi to stop him, the stranger grabbed Kushina and killed the remaining two Medic-Nin's grabbing Hachiman in the process. In the same fluid motion the masked stranger swept Kakashi's feet out from under him. "Only my respect for you as a warrior is the reason you still draw breath Kakashi Hatake." said the man walking over to the window. "But attempt to follow me and I will kill this child, and then you." with that he shushined away.

Kakashi bolted to his feet and leapt out the window after the kidnapper. "Damn you!" he roared looking around wildly for him, killing intent coming off of him in waves like heat off of the sun or sound out of an amplifier. "Where are you!? BRING ME BACK MY SON YOU COWARDLY SON OF A BITCH-WHORE!" in the midst of his rage the shinobi found himself surprised at calling Hachiman his son, but his fury overpowered it.

Thinking quickly he summoned his two best tracker dogs. "Boss, what's going-"

"No time!" cried Kakashi. He handed one of them a scrap of Hachiman's diaper which had been torn off in the event upstairs. "You! Follow this scent! You!" he said turning to the other tracker. "Go round up Hiruzen Sarutobi, Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yuhi, Gai Maito, and any other powerful shinobi you can find and then follow the scent! Konoha is in for one wild night."

"You got it boss!" said the tracker. He took a good whiff of the diaper making a disgusted face at the stench, while somewhat reluctantly imprinting it into his memory bank, and took off as fast as he could to round up the shinobi of Konoha. The remaining tracker sniffed the diaper piece and furiously sniffed the ground.

"I got the scent boss!" cried the tracker hound. "It's barely there, but I got it!"

"Good." said Kakashi getting his game face on. "Let's get moving! Now!" with a rush they took off into the forest, following little Hachiman's strong scent. _'I don't know who the hell you are you bastard.'_ thought Kakashi in a deadly tone._ 'But I will hunt you down like a rat and make you regret the day you kidnapped Hachiman and Kushina Uzumaki. THAT is a promise. One which I intend to keep with extreme prejudice.'_

* * *

The masked man threw little Hachiman to the side, causing the wailing baby to sob even louder. He glowered at it as he secured Kushina in her chakra chains, he always hated the noises that babies made when they were irritated. It was one of his pet peeves. He wished he could simply kill it, but it was the only insurance he had.

"Uggh..." groaned Kushina listlessly. He turned his attention away from the baby. _'She is awake.'_ he thought in satisfaction. _'Excellent,now we can begin.'_

"Who are you?" moaned Kushina in pain. "What do you want?"

The masked man smiled under his facial disguise. "What I want is simple woman, I want the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Hachiman opened his eyes still wailing in pain. Where was his momma and papa? Why hadn't they come to save him? His gaze turned upward to the skies where they were quickly transfixed upon a single bright glowing object in the sky, hanging there like a great silver lantern. The moon looked down upon him with an unwavering eye, and Hachiman felt a very strange feeling come over him. It wasn't a bad feeling, it felt pretty good actually. It felt powerful, ancient, strangely familiar, and very, VERY, angry.

"I will use the Kyuubi to destroy the Leaf." sneered the masked man, unaware of the baby standing up behind him, it's gaze never leaving the lunar spectator above them. The baby's body felt ancient power flowing into it.

"No... please... you can't!" begged Kushina.

"I don't have time for this." he snarled. With that he activated his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. A shudder passed over Kushina, and she screamed in agony as a massive red cloud burst from her, the seal keeping the legendary fox in place shattering sending a spasm of agony through her body. She wailed in pain until the cloud was fully gone. The chakra chains vanished, and she fell to the rocky dais bellow her, feeling immense pain in every part of her body.

The cloud shifted and writhed, expanding and twisting, taking the shape of the great orange demon, it's eyes red and glazed from the Sharingan Genjutsu twisting it's mind to the masked man's dark purposes.

"Excellent," smiled the man from beneath his facial shield. "And now to destroy the-"

"You trifle with forces beyond your understanding you foolish man." said a cold voice behind him. The masked man turned to see the oddest creature that he had ever seen. He was about 6'3, and was covered in green skin. His head was smooth save for two antenna that twitched every now and again. He wore white and purple robes made of a flowing silk with the kanji for "Guardian" emblazoned upon it.

"Who and what the Hell are you?" snarled the masked man.

The green man crossed his arms, radiating courage and dignity. "I am Seishin, Guardian of this sorry dirt ball you call home. I am a Namekian warrior of the Tageruung Tribe, chosen as I am for an accident, and a debt to which I am forever bound."

The masked man had no idea what he was talking about, but decided to play along in hopes of learning more lest this creature prove dangerous. "If you're the so called "Guardian", then will you be trying to stop me? If so I am not sorry to say that you will be disappointed."

Seishin gave him a shit-eating grin which the stranger immediately distrusted. "Oh it won't be me who stops you, it will be him." said the Namekian pointing behind the masked man. The stranger turned to see Hachiman standing up and staring at the moon.

The stranger laughed. "Him?" he laughed turning back to the Namekian. "He's staring at the moon like a retarded puppy! What could he possibly-" That was when there was a roar behind him. The stranger wheeled around and saw in panic that little Hachiman was growing, white fur covering his body, his infant teeth growing into enormous ape-like fangs. He grew and grew, his loud continuous roar becoming louder and deeper, muscles thickening and growing beneath his skin. With a final spurt of growth the great white ape stood taller even than the Kyuubi no Kitsune, his eyes glowing red with blood-lust.

"Behold and tremble in fear," said Seishin in a mix of smug satisfaction, caution, and grim fear. "before the awesome might, of the mighty Oozaru, the Great Ape of the Saiyan Race, and the Destroyer of Worlds."

With a savage and feral roar, the great ape drew back it's fist and punched the Kyuubi in it's face. The tailed beast went sprawling, sending dozen's of trees down. With a snarl of pure hate the fox stood and lunged at the Oozaru. He landed on the ape snapping at his face, held at bay by the Oozaru's massive arms. The ape drew back his head and headbutted the Kyuubi with all it's strength. There was a sickening _CRACK_ as skulls met and the Kyuubi fell to the ground with a terrific crash, dazed. Hachiman stumbled back, also a little disoriented.

The masked man was so mesmerized by the terrifying spectacle of the all out monster smack-down before him he failed to notice the enraged shinobi sneaking up behind him.

Kakashi Hatake, with murder in his eye and fury in his heart lunged forward with a cry of "CHIDORI!" bringing the full powered attack straight towards the man's back. With only seconds to react, the stranger wheeled around, parrying the strike and causing Kakashi to strike a nearby tree. The tree exploded from the force of the Chidori attack. Kakashi spun around, glaring at the stranger. "You aren't as stupid as you dress, you're even stupider for kidnapping my kid! Where is he you son of a bitch!"

The masked man laughed at him. "He stands behind you! Through some sorcery on this green thing's part he has become the monster which now attacks my Kyuubi!"

"What the-" said Kakashi looking behind him, only just noticing the giant monkey and fox battling. "Holy shit! Somehow I completely missed that."

"Kakashi listen to me." said Seishin firmly. "The Kyuubi is under this one's genjutsu, you must aid the ape in fighting him. I shall deal with the masked one."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the Namekian. "Why should I trust you?"

Seishin groaned in frustration and glared at Kakashi. "Look, you either trust me, or this guy." said Seishin gesturing to the masked man.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Seishin. "Is the ape truly Hachiman?" he growled.

Seishin nodded. "But through no magic of mine. It was through his own blood that he became the beast you now see." His voice adopted a more urgent tone. "And if you don't hurry Hachiman will die. He is powerful in this form yes, but he is still no match for the Kyuubi no Kitsune. You must help him, or he will die."

"He won't be alone." said a quiet voice off to the side. All three turned to see Minato Namikaze standing there, holding a half-dead Kushina in his arms. "Kakashi, you need to distract the Kyuubi with Hachiman and keep it away from the village, just let me get Kushina to safety, I have a plan."

Kakashi grinned. "You've got it sensei, be back soon."

"No you don-" began the masked man, but he was interrupted by a punch from Seishin in his gut. The strike sent the stranger flying into a nearby tree.

"GO KAKASHI! GO MINATO!" cried Seishin. "WE MUST BE QUICK!"

Minato took off towards the village with Kushina in his arms. With a war cry Kakashi ran towards the dueling monsters. Seishin shed his heavy robe leaving him in only black Gi bottoms. The robe crashed to the ground with an explosion of dust. Though he was obviously quite old, he still had the toned, powerful body of a warrior. The Stranger rose to his feet and whirled on Seishin. "I will kill you green one!" he roared.

Seishin merely smiled and spread his arms open wide. "Come at me if you dare warrior of the Sharingan. Come and see what one trained in the way of Z Warriors can do."

Kakashi ran up Hachiman's great leg as he beat his chest in fury. The Kyuubi crouched low, snarling at the ape. Kakashi reached Hachiman's shoulder and prepared to jump over to the Kyuubi. He saw, with some alarm, that the Kyuubi was forming a giant ball of pure energy in it's mouth. Knowing that he had not a moment to lose, Kakashi leapt over, landing on the Kyuubi's back.

The moment he landed, Kakashi spun on his heel, charging up his Chidori as he dashed as fast as he could towards the monster's head. With a savage cry he thrust his hand forward, lightning flaring around his hand like a hurricane contained in his palm, he thrust it right into the back of the Kyuubi's head.

There was an explosion of energy and the Kyuubi howled in pain. It's concentration broken, the attack exploded in mid air right in the Kyuubi's face. The Kyuubi was blasted on it's back legs and began to fall.

"OHHHHH SHI-" Kakashi began to scream, but he quickly found himself caught in someone's arms. His savior landed in the trees as the Kyuubi crashed to the ground.

"Figures." said a very familiar voice from above him. "We separate for a little bit and you wind up in the middle of a battle between a Tailed Beast and a giant monkey." Kakashi looked up to see Kurenai smiling at him.

"K-Kurenai!" he cried in shock and joy. "Th-thank you!"

"You know, I always thought that Kurenai-chan would wear the pants in whatever relationship she was in," smirked the voice of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the former Hokage. Kakashi looked up to see his tracker standing before a small army of Shinobi, led by the old warrior and Asuma. And every single one wore a smug, shit-eating grin at the legendary "copycat ninja" rescued by a kunoichi. Blushing in embarrassment he scrambled out of Kurenai's hold and jumped to his own perch.

"Are you all right Kakashi?" asked Gai with a chuckle. "No cooties?"

Kakashi glared at him before addressing the Shinobi. "Alright listen up, out there is the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the Nine-Tailed Fox, the most powerful of all the Tailed Beasts. If we don't help that ape out there, if we don't hold it here, then it will kill everyone in the village, and lay waste to the Land of Fire. Now I'm not going to sugar-coat it, not all of us are going to make it out of this alive, not all of us are going to make it out alive, and not everyone is going to get home to their family." He looked at each of them, seeing the fear in their eyes, but Kakashi also saw something else. In that moment, he could see the enigmatic "Will of Fire" that the Shodaime had preached, that his own sensei had tried to teach him, burning in their eyes. "But I can guarantee one thing, tonight we will be known as the warriors who defeated the Nine-Tailed Fox. All the world will know that the Shinobi of the Village Hidden in the Leaves held their own against the Kyuubi no Kitsune! Are you ready to make history?! Are you ready to save our home!" he cried.

"HAI KAKASHI-SAN!" cried the Shinobi, save Hiruzen who smiled to himself.

"Then get to it!" he cried. "And remember, the ape is our friend! FOR KONOHAGAKURE NO SATO! FOR OUR HOME!" he roared punching his fist into the air.

"HAI KAKASHI-SAN!" cried the assembled warriors again.

_'I think I have found a new potential Godaime.'_ thought Hiruzen with a smile. It was true, for a moment Hiruzen forgot that it was his sensei, not Kakashi himself, who was the Hokage. _'If ever the First Hokage needed an example of the Will of Fire, he needed only to use Kakashi-san.'_ "HAI KAKASHI-SAN!" he cried in approval.

"We're with you Kakashi." said Kurenai with a smile. "LET'S KICK SOME FOX ASS!" she screamed.

"Let's do this!" cried Kakashi. The Shinobi of Konoha cried out in ascent with a collective roar of war which shook the forest itself to it's roots.

Meanwhile, the masked man went flying through the air as Seishin strode forward. The mighty warrior looked down upon the stranger with disgust. "Do you see now, child thief. I am trained in the ways of Kami the Nameless One, of Piccolo the Namekian Warrior, of Prince Vegeta, of Goku Son himself. You cannot defeat me."

The masked man struggled to his feet, and glared at him. "What are you! This power you hold, it is not natural!"

"Wrong my friend." remarked Seishin casually. "This is power in it's purest form. And now witness my ultimate attack! Passed down through the ages by the great Goku Son himself!" He brought his hand forward, one over the other, gathering energy in his body. "Ka-me.." he said quietly. He brought the bottom of his palms together and brought them to his side in a cupped fashion, a blue ball of energy sparking in them. "Ha-me..." He thrust his hands forward, blasting a huge perfect beam of blue energy as tall as himself right at the masked man. "HA!" the blast shot forward, overtaking the masked man and blasting a hole through the forest. The blue beam dissipated, revealing a huge burned section of the forest. A huge trench had been burned into the forest floor. "Let that be the end of you." he said under his breath.

He never noticed the figure standing in the trees off to the side, carefully hiding his chakra from the Guardian. "Who would have thought something as basic as the substitution jutsu would be my salvation. The Z Warriors eh," he glared at the creature as he walked away. "I will have to inform Madara-sama about this, and we must learn more about these "Z Warriors"."

* * *

Minato Namikaze lay his wife in the bed next to his son. The poor woman was barely conscious as the Hokage stroked her hair. "Minato-kun," she said sleepily, "I'm so sorry Minato-kun."

"Shh my heart, it was not your fault, it was never your fault." he said softly stroking her hair. Kushina didn't seem to notice him, she only stared at their son lying there, surprisingly peaceful lying on the mattress.

"You've got to go fight with Kakashi don't you?" she said in the same dream-like voice. It was more a statement than a question.

Minato nodded stiffly. "Yes, yes I do."

Kushina said nothing for a long moment. "Let's leave Minato, let's leave the village. We can't defeat the monster, no shinobi, kunoichi, or even an army of both can kill the Kyuubi. Let's leave and take our son with us. Let's just live."

Minato was shocked that Kushina, the most loyal kunoichi he had ever met, was proposing such a thing. "I-I'm sorry Kushina, I can't do that."

Kushina said nothing for a long moment, seeming not to have heard him. Finally she said, still gazing at the baby, "We should name him before you go, we may never get another chance."

Minato nodded, holding back tears. "Yes... what do you think would be a good name?" he asked.

She paused, then said, "Naruto." she said simply.

Minato smiled. "Yes, that is a wonderful name." There was a long moment of silence where a sort of understanding passed between them, a wordless communication on the level of the soul. "I have to seal it Kushina, it's the only way."

"It will kill you, you know that." he said quietly.

"I know Kushina, I know." he said.

"Who will you seal it in?" she asked calmly, as though discussing the weather. "Kakashi? He would make a good Jinchūriki for Kurama."

Minato shook his head. "I cannot seal Kurama in anyone else, and will not reseal him in you. There is... only one capable of holding him that I can seal him in."

She turned to him, a wild look in her eyes. **"False Sleep Jutsu."** Said Minato softly before she could say anything. Kushina quickly fell to the mattress deep in sleep. Minato took a sealed envelope out of the pocket of his shirt and placed it in Kushina's hand. "Dream my princess." said Minato, tears running down his face. "Dream of you, and me, and little Naruto together. Stay safe Kushina, Minato is going to need his mother." He kissed her on the forehead. "I love you Kushina." With that he turned and grabbed his Hokage cloak and donned the hat bearing the symbol of Konoha upon it. He turned and plucked Naruto from the bed. "I'm so sorry Naruto." he said, guilt in his eyes. "I hope one day you can forgive me."

* * *

The battle had no clear favor.

Kakashi and Hiruzen were commanding the warriors of Konoha as best they could against the demon, acting mainly as support for Oozaru Hachiman, but it seemed no matter what they did the Kyuubi shrugged it off like it was nothing. On the other hand, They had managed to keep it away from the village, so that was a plus.

Kakashi stood by Kurenai, both having recently been thrown off the Kyuubi's back. "How many casualties thus far?" growled Kakashi, glaring at the Nine-Tailed Fox before them.

"Thirteen." she answered grimly. "But more Shinobi are arriving from the village. Hopefully the Hokage will get here soon as well."

Kakashi mentally cursed the Kyuubi for losing so many good men and women. "Damn it, we'll have to change up our approach. I think that-" Kakashi trailed off as he saw what was unfolding before him. Golden chains of pure chakra wrapped around it's body. Hachiman roared in surprise and stumbled as the chains knocked his out of the way as they wrapped themselves the great fox. Hachiman fell to the ground and the chains seemed to drag the Kyuubi towards something. "_**NO!**_" roared the Fox in panic._** "I will not be sealed again!"**_ it bellowed, and bounded off towards something. With a feral scream of rage, Hachiman grabbed the Kyuubi from behind dragging it backward, not wanting to allow his foe to escape.

With a flash of light Seishin appeared beside them. "You must stop Hachiman!" he cried. "He will be sealed along with the Kyuubi if you do not, we must not allow that!"

Kakashi and Kurenai felt panic fill their hearts at the idea of the child they thought of as their own being sealed inside someone with that monster. "What do we do." said Kurenai.

"His tail is his weak point." answered Seishin. "Attack him there and you will be able to subdue him." The moment he had said these words Kakashi had taken off as fast as he could for Hachiman who was now continuously punching the Kyuubi with one hand while the other held onto the famous nine tails with a death grip. As he got close Kakashi charged up his Chidori as high as he could, to a level he had never gone before. It looked like he held the Thunder God himself in his palm.

"I'm sorry Hachiman." he said as he ran up to the great ape. "CHIDORI!" he roared as he jumped into the air, and thrust his hand into the mighty tail of the Oozaru. Hachiman roared in pain and released the now unconscious Kyuubi who was unceremoniously dragged by the chains towards it's location.

Kakashi dashed out of the way as the giant white ape stumbled a few steps. Then, like watching a mountain crumble, Hachiman fell backward to the ground with an explosion of earth and stone. He moaned in pain.

"HACHIMAN!" cried Kakashi running forward to his adoptive son. With a flash, Seishin appeared in front of him, now with his robe and a staff in hand. The Namekian stood with his back to Kakashi, silent and strong as an oak tree. "Hey, what give-" Seishin raised a silencing hand. With that, he held his staff over Hachiman and began to chant in an unfamiliar language. As he did symbols began to glow all over Hachiman's body, and he began to shrink. His white fur receded into his body, his ape-like fangs became normal teeth if a little pointier that usual. Kakashi was almost unaware of Kurenai coming to his side and the other Shinobi gathering around watching the spectacle with a mixture of fear and awe.

After a long moment, Hachiman lay in the middle of a great ape shaped hole in the ground, a baby once more. The spell of awe broken Kakashi and Kurenai rushed forward. Kakashi picked up his son and cradled the baby in his hands. The symbols on his body glowed a deep purple, and faded away as though it had never been. "I've sealed away the power of the Oozaru." said Seishin in a tired voice as he approached the distraught parents. "It won't trouble him for some time, at least until he is old enough to learn to control it."

"Who- who the actual Hell are you!" cried Kakashi.

"I am Seishin, Guardian of this planet, warrior of the Tageruung Tribe." said the Namekian proudly. "And we have much to discuss Kakashi-san."

_**AN: I have returned people! With the help of some amazing individuals, I have made it through a tough time in my life. Now I am back, and better than ever. I'll be able to update now, just not as often as I would like. so stay tuned, there is more where this came from.**_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Aftermath

_**AN:**_** Hello everybody! Two really important things I need to ask you about, both concerning the pairings in this story. **

**Should Sakura be paired with another OC I'll be putting into the story as I have originally planned or should I pair her with Gaara. Let me know in the reviews what you think.**

**Should Kushina be paired with someone else now that Minato is dead? If so, let me know who you think would be best.**

**Thanks for keeping up with this story, and to those who are curious, Hachiman's personality will be a combination of Bardock from Dragon Ball Z and Natsu Dragneel from Fairy Tail.**

**Oh yeah, the following is a non-profit fan-based story. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragonball GT, are owned by Funimation, Toei Animation, and Akira Toriyama. Naruto and Naruto Shippuden are owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Please support the official release.**

_**LET'S GO!**_

There were too many goodbyes that night, but none were more terrible than the loss of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

It hadn't been hard to find the Yondaime's body and the wailing baby with the seal on it's belly lying next to the dead man. Kakashi recognized the baby as Minato's son. The story just sort of fell into place after that. They had won, they had defeated the Kyuubi no Kitsune, Hachiman was back to normal, Kurenai was okay, and yet Kakashi felt no sense of victory. Instead he felt numb upon finding his sensei who had been more of a father than his actual father, dead.

Seishin had disappeared without a word, allowing him to mourn the loss of his sensei. Kakashi was grateful, he didn't think he could take any more revelations that night. He and Kurenai had both walked to the village leading the Shinobi warriors, carrying their dead. Kakashi held Minato's body at the head of the travelers, Kurenai by his side holding the sleeping Hachiman in her arms. Next to her was Hiruzen who carried Naruto with a bowed head. Not a word was spoken as the Shinobi walked through the gates of Konoha. Civilians came out of their homes to see Kakashi holding Minato. The shinobi group slowly dispersed to take the dead to their proper places. Silence followed Kakashi, Hiruzen, and Kurenai wherever they walked. There were no tears, no grief, just a hollow, empty feeling of shock.

The tears, Kakashi knew, would come later.

The hardest part was telling Kushina, and Kakashi knew that duty fell to him. After the bodies were taken to their next of kin, Kurenai took little Hachiman back to Kakashi's apartment. Not a word was spoken between them, Kurenai knew what Kakashi had to do. He and Hiruzen walked slowly to the Namikaze estate. As they walked Kakashi told Hiruzen about how he had found Kushina giving birth after his date with Kurenai, how the masked man had interrupted matters, how he had followed him. Hiruzen listened with the quiet patience of a grandfather listening to his grandson talk about his problems with his parents.

By the time Kakashi was done, they had reached the Namikaze manor, looming over them, silent and deadly, like a great beast waiting to consume them. "How are we gonna do this?" asked Hiruzen quietly.

"Me, not you." said Kakashi. "You're the Hokage again, you need to get things under control as quick as possible before some fool tries to take control. Minato was my sensei, it's my job and I will do it, just like any other mission."

"Kakashi-" began Hiruzen putting his arm but Kakashi cut him off.

"Now Sarutobi." he said shrugging off the old man's arm.

Hiruzen sighed. "At least let me take Naruto in." he said to the grieving Jonin.

"Fine, then get a hold of this village." he said grimly. He walked through the open door with Hiruzen on his heels. The inside of the house was cold, dark, and deadly silent. The air felt dead, the air felt quiet. The room had the feel of a person in mourning, like it already knew it's master was dead and felt his loss. Kakashi set Minato's body down on the couch, looking for all the world like he was sleeping after a long days work. Kakashi stood and turned too Hiruzen, unable to bear the sight of his master cold and dead.

"Here, knowing her child is alive may soften the blow a little bit." said Hiruzen handing the sleeping Naruto to Kakashi. Two weeks ago, if he had been handed a child Kakashi would have had no idea what to do with it. But experience with Hachiman had taught him the proper way to handle an infant, and little Naruto fit snugly in his arms.

_'How can something so innocent and so tiny hold something so vicious and so bloodthirsty.'_ he thought as he looked at little Naruto. _'Is Hachiman a jinchūriki of that giant ape? Is that why he turned into it?'_ he found himself wishing that Seishin had not disappeared, the old creature seemed to have answers of some kind.

"Well, we'd best get to work shall we." said Hiruzen sadly. Kakashi wordlessly nodded in agreement. "Good luck Kakashi, Kami knows we're all going to need plenty of that." sighed Hiruzen. For the first time in a long time, Hiruzen's age seemed to catch up with him. He looked old for once. Without another word Hiruzen left the house.

Kakashi slowly and purposefully walked up the stairs to where he felt Kushina would be. The oppressive silence weighed down upon him like a thousand anvils. As he reached the summit he turned to the door where he knew Kushina would be. With a sense of purpose and impending doom, Kakashi pushed open the door.

Kushina was out cold on her bed, sleeping. Kakashi walked over to her and shifted Naruto in his arms so that he might hold him with one arm. He gently shook Kushina awake. "Kushina-chan, wake up."

Kushina blinked awake, disoriented for a moment. "Minato-kun, is that you?"

"No Kushina, it's me, Kakashi." said the jonin sadly.

"Oh, Kakashi, you're okay." She rose to a seated position and her eyes widened when she saw baby Naruto in his arms. "Naruto! My sochi! Give me my sochi!" she cried. Kakashi gladly obliged, handing Kushina her child. "Oh my baby." she said softly, cuddling the baby, making Kakashi's heart break a little inside. "Where is Minato?" she asked Kakashi a little desperately. "Where is my husband?" she demanded.

Kakashi waited a long moment, gathering all his courage, knowing that these next words would shatter Kushina's heart and destroy her inside. "I-I'm sorry Kushina, but there was only one way we could stop the Kyuubi."

"No..." said Kushina, tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry, but he did it. Minato-sama used the Demon Death Seal to seal the Kyuubi in Naruto. He's dead Kushina, I'm sorry."

The silence which filled the room was deafening. Kakashi watched in agony as he saw Kushina's heart break in her eyes. "No." she finally said. "No, you're lying, YOU'RE LYING GODAMMIT!" she screamed, tears pouring down her face. Naruto began to wail as his mother squeezed him slightly.

"I'm sorry Kushina, I wish I was, but I'm not. He's dead." said Kakashi.

"STOP LYING TO ME YOU LITTLE SHIT!" she sobbed. "GIVE ME BACK MY HUSBAND!" she collapsed into a sobbing wreck against Kakashi who held her gently. "He's not dead." she moaned. "He can't be dead, we're supposed to be a family! HE PROMISED ME WE'D BE A FAMILY!" She cried into his shirt, Naruto matching her wails, while Kakashi held her in the dark oppressive night, a solitary tear sliding down his cheek.

* * *

"The Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato is dead," said Hiruzen sadly. He stood before the entire village in the early wee hours of the morning bearing the cloak and hat of the Hokage, a garb he had never thought that he would wear again. There was a gray drizzle in the air, more a mist than a rain giving the whole thing a gray and grieving look. Behind him and to the left was the Fire Daimyo, come to pay his respects and gain a full report of the situation. Behind him and to his right was Kushina, cradling a sleeping Naruto, her eyes red from crying. Between him and the mourners were the bodies of the heroes who had died fighting for Konoha against the Kyuubi no Kitsune. There were twenty two deaths that night, all outstanding shinobi, but not nearly as bad as it could have been if the Oozaru had not been there. Twenty one of the bodies were assembled in a line on their respective funeral pyres, but one lay directly before the old man.

Minato Namikaze lay on his funeral pyre, garbed in his finest kimono, his legendary Hiarashin kunai in his hands. He looked so peaceful, so serene, Hiruzen half expected him to get up and take the hat and cloak from him.

But of course he did not.

"Yes, he is gone." said Hiruzen. "But what he stood for lives on. It lives on in Konoha, and the promise this village holds. It lives on in the Will of Fire which burns in us all. And it lives on in his son, Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze." St these words a rush of disbelief ran through the crowd. Now they knew why the infant was there, he was there for his father's funeral. "The Fourth Hokage saved us from Kumogakure and Iwagakure, he gave us our freedom." continued Hiruzen. "Now he has made the ultimate sacrifice, he has given up his own life for us, and sealed away the Demon Fox in his own son for our protection." An awed hush fell over the crowd as they realized the sheer scope of Minato's sacrifice. "The Yondaime gave us everything, the least we can do is honor his memory, by honoring what he believed him, and honoring his son. But let us honor him this night, and every brave soul who met their end in defense of this village." Hiruzen nodded off to the side where several ANBU were waiting. At the signal, they made hand signs and preformed several fire-ball jutsus, sending the pyre's up in flames.

The flames consumed the flesh of the brave souls, the courageous warriors, the shinobi who perished in the battle. Wails of lamentation swept through the crowd, but Hiruzen only watched as Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash of Konohagakure no Sato burned away in the flames. One question rose into his mind above all others. _'What do we do now'_

* * *

Kakashi holding Hachiman, Kurenai, Kushina holding Naruto, and Jiraiya sat in the Hokage's office with Hiruzen sitting behind the desk. Kakashi held Hachiman cradled in one hand, his other intertwined with Kurenai's. Kakashi still felt numb from the death of his Sensei, but holding Kurenai's hand made him feel a little stronger. Kushina looked haggard, half-dead, and after hearing what had happened no one blamed her. She had gone through the physical agony of having a Tailed-Beast extracted from her, and gone through the mental agony of losing her husband in one night.

Frankly, everyone was shocked that she could still stand.

Jiraiya's eyes were red from tears, but they were completely dry, he had done his grieving and that was that.

"I would like to address some things with you in private before we meet with the councils." said Sarutobi in his most diplomatic voice. "First is the matter of Naruto." said Sarutobi.

"If those fat gastropods on the Civilian Council think that they're getting their slimy hands on my sochi then they have another think coming." said Kushina calmly.

"I'm with Kushina on this one." growled Jiraiya. "That kid needs his family more than anything right now. And right now Kushina is the only family he's got."

Hiruzen nodded. "Good. Since one of the biological parents wants the baby there should be no problem. Now, there is the matter of Hachiman." said Hiruzen grimly. "Kakashi, I need you to tell me all you know about Hachiman and how a Saiyan came to live with you."

Kakashi sighed. "Look, all I know is I found him in the woods and started taking care of him with Kurenai's help. I don't even know what a Saiyan is."

"Legends, folklore, stories told in front of a campfire." said Jiraiya in a strained voice. "That's what Saiyans are. Supposedly they're legendary warriors from the stars with god-like power. Two of the Z-Warriors were Saiyans according to legend."

"Who are the Z-Warriors?" asked Kurenai.

"No one is sure, no one really agrees on who they were, all we know is that they were incredibly powerful warriors who outdated the Rikudou Sennin himself. But beyond that," Hiruzen spread his hands out in a helpless manner. "We know next to nothing about them."

"What I want to know is how he transformed from that giant ape thing; an Oozaru was it?" asked Jiraiya.

Kakashi shrugged. "You've got me. He might have the ape thing sealed in him and something caused the seal to break, but I detected no seals on him when I got him."

"Regardless of how he transformed into a giant monkey, the Councils will want action taken. Most likely they will try to put him into the CRA as genetic material or something like that." Hiruzen sighed.

Kakashi jumped up, murder in his visible eye. "That is not going to happen." he hissed with enough venom to make Orochimaru uncomfortable. "I'll kill them all first." swore Kurenai, standing next to her cycloptic friend.

Hiruzen smiled. "I thought so, and it seems that Minato thought so as well." Hiruzen reached into his desk and produced several pieces of paper. Kakashi frowned and grabbed them with his free hand.

"Hokage-sama, what are these?" he asked as he looked them over.

"Adoption papers Kakashi." grinned Hiruzen. "Apparently Minato anticipated this from you and drew them up when he found Kushina taking care of Hachiman. They're all filled out, all you need to do is sign your name."

Kakashi stared at the papers. All his life, he had never considered the idea of becoming a father. Given his poor experience with dads he believed that he would not be the best for a growing child. Not only that, but Kakashi had never really wanted kids, he was a shinobi of Konohagakure no Sato, he didn't have time for something like a relationship, let alone children. And yet, through some trick of fate, here he was, seriously considering adopting some kid who apparently had God-like power inside him after the single most incredible battle of his life with a demon that could probably level every Shinobi Nation if it wanted to.

He couldn't do it, he wasn't cut out to be a dad. He couldn't offer the boy anything, only a sad lonely world.

But he looked down at Hachiman in his arms, and somehow, he knew it would be alright for both of them. He should of known, when he first picked up Hachiman in that forest, he should have known that he would never be able to give the infant up.

"Where do I sign?" he finally said. Hiruzen handed him a pen and pointed to a line near the bottom. With a flourish of his hand across the paper, Kakashi officially became a father.

Hiruzen smiled and nodded. "Now there is one more matter we need to discuss." he said rolling up the papers and tucking them into his cloak. He nodded to Kushina. "Show it to him." Kushina nodded and reached into her pocket. She withdrew her hand revealing a sealed envelope with Kakashi's name written on it in a hasty scrawl as though it had been written in a great hurry.

"Minato gave this to me before he... before he..." she said sounding close to tears. Kakashi handed Hachiman over to Kurenai and walked over to Kushina. He gently took the letter from her. It was as though having the thing that was written by her husband taken away was like a weight off her shoulders. She immediately looked better, and infinitely relieved.

Kakashi sat down and opened the letter. With a hesitant voice he began to read his sensei's words.

"_Kakashi,_

_One-thousand jutsus. That's how many jutsus you have copied with your Sharingan if not more. You are the copy ninja of Konoha, and you are the most loyal ninja I have ever had the pleasure to know._

_But what have you done with that potential? Nothing. I hate to be accusatory, but you have done nothing with your potential since Rin died. You have created no variations of your copied jutsus like many Sharingan users do. The only jutsu you have created is the Chidori, and while that is a great feat in and of itself, you could do so much more with it. You have the potential to surpass even the great Hashirama Senju._

_But ever since losing Rin you have nothing personal to fight for anymore. Fighting for the well being of everyone is a good reason to fight, but even the greatest of warriors need something personal, something beyond the greater good to fight for. After losing your teammates, you lost that, and your power plateaued._

_It wasn't like this when Obito passed away, if anything his loss lit a fire under your ass, but I think you cared about rin more than you'd like to admit. She was your reason to fight, whether you like it or not._

_But these past couple weeks, I've seen some sort of change in you. A spark I haven't seen in years. And now I know the reason. This child, Hachiman you called him when you dropped him off, has given you a personal reason to fight. And from what I've heard around the village a certain Genjutsu Mistress has as well._

_Kakashi, in Kirigakure no Sato there is a revolution taking place led by Zabuza Momochi. It is doomed to fail. Unless Konoha intervenes._

_I'm sending you this letter as notice so you aren't shocked when you're chosen to lead the force that will help Zabuza Momochi. It will be a fight to get the civilian council to agree to this, but I have support in the Shinobi Council, and Mebuki Haruno should be able to win over enough of the fat gastropods on the Civilian side._

_I love you like a son Kakashi, and I'm certain that you will be a fine big brother to my coming child. If you do this Kakashi, if you win us an ally in Kiri, then you will have a real chance of becoming the Godaime._

_Good luck and best wishes,_

_Minato_"

Kakashi stared down at the letter as silence filled the room. _'Sensei... he really thought I could surpass the Shodaime?' _thought Kakashi in awe.

"We're willing to go through with this plan Kakashi." said Hiruzen. "In fact, I think it would be wise if we did given Konoha's rocky political position of late."

Kakashi felt tears in his eyes. He felt undeserving of the praise given to him from his Sensei. He couldn't protect Rin, he couldn't protect Obito, and he couldn't even protect his Hokage in the end. He blinked back the tears and considered what the letter was proposing.

In the end he shrugged. "I will do what you think is best Lord Hokage."

Hiruzen nodded. "Alright then, we have an agreement." he sighed and stood. "Now ready yourselves people, we have on hell of a headache coming up."

* * *

"WE MUST DESTROY BOTH OF THE DEMON BRATS!" roared a member of the Civilian Council.

"May I remind you that the tailed brat saved all our asses by transforming in to that ape thing." snarled Fugaku Uchiha. Fugaku was a proud man, and he respected power, and from the look of it the little Saiyan had power in abundance. Plus, the fat toads on the Civilian Council never ceased to piss him off.

"As troublesome as Fugaku-san usually is," began Shikaku Nara, "he is right, the child saved us all. Our losses would have been much greater without his presence." Despite his calm exterior, Shikaku was internally grieving, he had lost two of his kinsmen in the fighting, one of which had been his sister. He was thankful that he had not lost more.

"Well, we should still destroy the Kyuubi brat." snarled another council member. Said council member immediately found Kushina Uzumaki's prized ANBU katana pressed to his throat.

"Say anything like that about my sochi again and I won't hesitate." said Kushina coldly. The murderous look in her eye was enough to kill on it's own, and the killing intent in the air was as thick as pea soup.

"Alright everyone, let's play nice here." said Mebuki Haruno walking towards her Shinobi friend very slowly. She carefully pushed the sword down with two fingers. "We're here to talk, not to murder." she said. _'Never mind how much I'd like to help you guys slaughter these overfed cows.'_ thought the merchant woman.

"I agree." said Hiruzen stoically from his seat at the front of the room. "Please sit down Kushina, and let us discuss this matter in a civil manner."

Kushina gave the trembling Councilman one last death glare that would have made Batman shit his pants and sat down in her place as head of the Uzumaki Clan.

"Alright, now that that is settled we can discuss what we need to." said Hiruzen calmly. "To begin with, Naruto's mother still wants the child and is his legal guardian. If you wish to make a case as to why she is unfit to be a mother, you may do so. But until such time as it is proved, Naruto will stay with his mother." said Hiruzen in a firm but diplomatic voice. "In addition, Hachiman is an official member of the Hatake family, and therefore cannot be taken away either. Like before, you may pursue a case against Kakashi, but until he is proven to be an unfit father Hachiman will remain with Kakashi as is his right."

From his seat at the back of the room, Danzo cleared his throat. "With all due respect Hokage-sama, would it not be smarter to use this power? The Fox and the Ape-Boy are a blessing to us. If you were to give me custody of them, I could train them. I could turn them into the ultimate weapons for Konoha's use."

Danzo's words were met with mixed reactions. While some on the civilian council and Fugaku Uchiha felt that he made sense, the rest however either mistrusted Danzo's or were too frightened of the man to agree.

To his credit Hiruzen never lost his cool. "My answer remains the same Danzo, if you wish to pursue a case against Kakashi or Kushina then you may. But until you convince me that Naruto and Hachiman are not safe with their respective parents I will not take them away from them." said the hokage in an icy voice.

Danzo glared at his Hokage. "Hiruzen, I know that you find my methods unsavory, but I have only ever had Konoha's well being in my heart. I know what I am talking about when I say that these two boys are an opportunity that we cannot pass up."

"You will do as I say Danzo, or I will be forced to discipline you." said Hiruzen with murder in his eyes. Danzo gave Hiruzen one last venomous glare and sat down.

"Now that that is settled," said Hiruzen with a sigh, "We have another matter to discuss."

* * *

Kakashi and Kurenai walked together towards Kakashi's apartment. Kakashi cradled his new son in his arms as the baby peacefully slept, still out cold from all the excitement. "Think they'll go for it?" asked Kurenai. "For the aid of Zabuza I mean?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Maybe. We do need allies right now and we have teamed up with Kiri in the past. It's a possibility."

"And if they do, will you lead them?" asked Kurenai.

Kakashi said nothing for a long moment. When he did speak he spoke with purpose. "I don't know, but I will train, I will get stronger, I will make sure my Sensei wasn't stupid for believing in me. And if that means that I have to help wage a war against a tyrant then by Kami above I'll do it." he said holding Hachiman closer.

Kurenai narrowed her eyes at him. "Is that really the only reason you'll do it?" she asked in a disbelieving voice. The look of confusion on Kakashi's face was too much for her. "Seriously? Did you not get the Yondaime's message at all!" she cried stepping in front of him stopping him in the middle of the street.

"What are you talking about?" asked Kakashi.

"You know what I'm talking about." said Kurenai poking him in the chest. "Didn't you understand him? About finding something personal to fight for? If you're going to do this just to prove your Sensei right then you're doing it for the wrong reasons!" Kakashi blinked at her. "Don't you get it dumb-ass?! Minato-sama was trying to tell you to find someone special to take care of!"

Kakashi frowned at her. "Really?"

Kurenai didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "You are living proof that men can live without a brain." she said disgusted and a little hurt.

"Kurenai what's wrong?" he asked as she walked away.

"Nothing," she sighed looking over her shoulder. "I just thought that... maybe... I was special to you."

Kakashi was shocked. "But you- I mean- you are Kurenai!" said Kakashi.

Kurenai stopped and turned to look at him. "What do you mean Kakashi?" she asked with suspicion in her voice.

Kakashi felt at a loss for words. "I mean uh- you're a trusted friend- I like you a lot- I mean- what I'm trying to say is- I think that I..." he trailed off when he saw the smile on Kurenai's face.

"Yeah, I think I do to Kakashi." she said. With that she walked up to him, pulled down his mask, and kissed him.

Kakashi couldn't think, he couldn't breath, he couldn't do anything. Kurenai Yuuhi was kissing him. When she finally broke the kiss she smirked at him. "See ya later one-eye." she said, and shushined away.

* * *

Roughly two miles outside of Konoha two figures perched on the tops of two trees right next to each other, watching the village from a distance.

One was a tall man. He was built long and lean and seemed to be practically made of muscle. His skin was pale, almost translucent, so you could see the veins and arteries pressed up against his skin. His eyes were a bright pink and his long wavy hair was snowy white, most likely from his albino condition. He was dressed in leather greaves, bracers, and a leather breastplate which was attached over a black sleeveless tunic and red gi pants. Clasped around his neck was a long red cloak which flapped in the breeze, with seven golden stars sewed into the rich red fabric. At his hip was a curved saber-sword with a golden, dragon's-head hilt. A small device was attached to either arm, holding a small blade which could be unsheathed at will.

His companion was female. Her skin was a rich dark mocha color with ruby red lips. Her black hair was long and silky, hanging down to her feet and flowed gracefully in the wind. She wore a black kimono with seven golden stars sewed into the back like the albino's cloak. On the front was a red hourglass symbol like one might find on the underside of a Black Widow Spider.

"So, the Akatsuki's plan to destroy the Leaf failed miserably it seems." commented the woman in a bored drawl.

The man snorted. "So it would seem." he said in a surprisingly deep voice. "They were fools to think that the Yondaime would not sacrifice himself for the sake of the piss-ant town." he scoffed.

"At least we learned that there is a Saiyan here now." she said in the same drawl.

The man pursed his lips and nodded. "Indeed, it could lead to trouble, but we could also use it to our advantage. Either way, the _Fuhrer _will not be pleased with this change in events."

"Oh don't be so negative Jhanun." said the woman with a dismissive wave. "The _Fuhrer_ needs us, well, needs me. Swordsman are easier to some by than a woman of my rather unique talents." she all but laughed.

Jhanun glared at her. "Don't test your fate with me Misalana. I will be more than happy to separate your head from your body." he snarled.

Misalana waved her hand again. "Oh don't get all riled up Jhanun, I was only kidding. Now lets go, we have a dragon to catch."

Jhanun nodded and jumped down from the tree, Misalana following suit. Together, they became shadows in the night.

* * *

On an island in the middle of the pacific there is a lone house. It is a rather small house, but cozy and comfortable. Seishin touched down on the island with a small puff of sand under his feet. With determined strides he made his way to the front door. From inside he heard the sound of an old female exercise tape playing.

"Oh yeah baby! Work it!" laughed the lecherous old man inside. With a disgusted scoff he pushed his way inside. Sure enough, there he was, the Turtle Hermit Master Roshi himself clad in nothing but his underwear.

"Roshi my friend." said Seishin dryly. "Four hundred years since we last and you haven't changed a bit."

Roshi gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah well, some immortal people change and some don't."

Seishin smiled and walked forward, embacing his friend. "It's good to see you again you old pervert." laughed Seishin.

"Aw shut up ya old slug." laughed Roshi pulling out of the hug. "Come on, sit down I'll get ya some coffee."

"You do know that I survive only on water." said Seshin as he sat down and Roshi bustled into the kitchen.

"Yeah well that's what coffee is, flavored water." said the old man turning on the coffee maker. "Ya want cream, sugar, anything?" asked Roshi.

"Black please." said the Guardian.

"Whatever you say," said the Turtle Hermit with an exagerated sigh. He punched the proper commands into the coffee maker.

"You still have that old thing?" laughed Seishin. "Genuine pre-fade science. I'm surprised you've jept it in such good shape this long."

"Yeah, I remember that battle you know." said Roshi sadly. "Kami, so many lost, and couldn't do a blasted thing about it." He shook his head at the memories. "If Vegeta had been on planet then it wouldn't have been so bloody."

Seishin nodded. "Aye, but every fight is easier with a Saiyan around." There was a ding as the coffee maker finished. "Here's your coffee boy." said Roshi bringing Seishin his coffee.

"Thank you very much my friend." said Seishin politely. Seishin took a sip of his drink as Roshi sat in the easy chair opposite him. "Actually Roshi, I did not come here simply to remenisce about old times."

"Eh, I thought so." said Roshi sadly. "So, whats the jig?"

"There is a new Saiyan here on Earth," said Seishin cutting straight to the point.

Roshi gaped at him. "A- another Saiyan?" he asked. "You- you have to be kidding me."

"Oh I am not kidding Roshi." said Seishin. He calmly put down his coffee and stood. He walked over to Roshi, looming over him, more imperious than any king. "Now I need to ask you a very important question, do you want to be useful again. If so you need to get off of this island and go to Konohagakure no Sato in Hi no Kuni and become a Jonin so you can train the boy when the time comes."

Roshi stared at the Namekian and considered what he was proposing. "So... you're telling me... that I have a chance to train another Saiyan. Just like I did old Goku?" he asked. Seishin nodded. "Well hot diggity damn!" laughed Roshi jumping out of his seat. "Sign me up buddy boy! This is the chance of a lifetime! YEE HAW!"


End file.
